To Fulfill a Duty
by DeadBHunter
Summary: When Sesshomaru is saved by Kagome, he has to save her from the brink of death. He brings Kagome to an aged miko where Kagome learns the tai youkai has feelings under his cold mask. SessKag
1. Chapter One

**To Fulfill a Duty**

**Chapter One**

**By: DeadBHunter**

Summary: When Sesshomaru is saved by Kagome, he has to save her from the brink of death. He brings Kagome to an aged miko where Kagome learns the tai youkai has feelings under his cold mask. Sess/Kag

"talking" _'thinking'_

**Chapter One**

"You bastard! What do you want now?!"

"I am rather busy, if you wish to delay me, I will have to kill you..."

"Are you going help Naraku _again_?"

"I do not conspire with the likes of _hanyous _such as yourself."

"Then why is Naraku's army all around us?!"

"Baka hanyou..."

The group of shard hunters had gotten themselves in another problem. On their way to look for a rumored shard near the border of the Western Lands, Sesshomaru came through the clearing. Inuyasha being Inuyasha, attacked before asking the tai youkai why he was here. While the two were fighting, Naraku's army, complete with saimyoshou, to prevent Miroku from using his kazaana, appeared. Sango, Miroku, and Kirara were appointed the task of protecting Kagome and preventing any youkai from interfering with the fight between the two brothers.

Kagome was glad she had told Shippo to stay at Kaede-bachan's hut. With Inuyasha, Sesshomaru, and Naraku's army all fighting against each other, her adopted son would have only gotten in the way.

Behind Sesshomaru, Naraku approached seeking death to the Lord of the Western Lands. With Sango and Miroku protecting her, Kagome was the only one who noticed the incoming danger.

'_Doesn't he have a little girl with him?' _

Kagome recalled seeing the tai youkai with a young girl with black hair and a gap-toothed smile.

'_Rin! What will she do without him? Who will watch her? What will she do?'_

The hanyou was now so close he couldn't miss the tai youkai of the West. A dark sphere of miasma appeared in front of him, aimed right toward the inu youkai.

"No!"

"Kagome-chan!" "Kagome-sama!" "Kagome!"

'_Nani? What is she doing?'_ were their only thoughts as their friend sprinted off toward the stoic tai youkai.

She wouldn't make it. She could tell. A sickening feeling began to squeeze at her heart.

'_No! I have to make it. What about Rin?' _

With that thought she surged forth thinking only of saving a Rin's future, not noticing the light purple glow surrounding her.

Her speed doubled that of an average human, caused by her growing miko powers and her compassionate nature.

'_I made it!'_

But before she had time to react, a swirling mass of youki drowned out the sight of Naraku in his baboon pelt.

_'Inuyasha, Shippo-chan, Sango-chan, Miroku-sama, Mama, Souta, Jii-chan! I'm sorry!' _ Were Kagome's thoughts before she closed her eyes, expecting to never open them again. She never noticed the purple glow that surrounded her, the same color that helped her save Sesshomaru from death.

Sesshomaru defeated the tiger youkai and turned around to see Inuyasha's wench shield him from Naraku's attack. _'What is the bitch doing?'_

Everyone looked toward Kagome at the sound of her scream, only to see her collapse with Naraku cackling right in front of her.

"No!" all three of her traveling companions yelled worry in their voices.

"Kukukukukuku. Inuyasha, your little bitch is mine!" With that said, Naraku picked Kagome up and started to leave.

"Kagome!!!!" was all you heard before you saw a red blur race toward Naraku.

"Sankon Tessuo!" A wooden doll fell on the ground where Naraku was.

Nearby, Kagome lay face down in the dirt.

Everyone rushed toward her with the exception of Sesshomaru who looked as indifferent as ever.

"Why should she go with you, Sesshomaru? How do we know you won't kill her in her sleep or something?" Inuyasha shouted.

"I have more honor than to do that. It is a disgrace to my name to kill a worthless ningen in her sleep. A female one at that..."

"She doesn't need to go to some healer with _you_; Kaede-baba can fix her!" Inuyasha cried out at his brother.

"I will not take her to some healer." _'Many healers have useless spells and chants that do nothing.'_

"She will be taken to Junsui, a miko located in my lands. Hopefully your hanyou mind has not forgotten the miko; she was the miko present to help your mother in birth. A disgrace to the miko for touching your human mother and your dirty blood, but she obeyed our father. If she did not, her life would be forfeit. Your bitch has saved my life, as much as it pains me to say so. My honor will not allow your wench to be unrewarded. I am in her debt for the time being. Besides, this is for your bitch's own good. If you do not want to her to live, then so be it. I could care less if another ningen dies."

Sesshomaru did not like this idea any better than his brother. But if he helped her now, then he would be out of debt.

Sango and Miroku, who had been listening throughout the inu youkai's speech, were both hoping that Inuyasha would not let his pride and hate toward his half-brother get in the way of helping Kagome. Even Kaede did not have the knowledge or the training to cure Kagome. Their only hope lay in the youkai in front of them who had more than once threatened their friend's life.

Shippo was devastated! He did not like the thought of Kagome leaving anymore than Sesshomaru liked taking Kagome with him. Especially that it was Sesshomaru who was going to take his surrogate mother away. He had already seen too much death and lost too many people that were close to him in his short life.

"Feh," was Inuyasha's only reply. All knew that Inuyasha had agreed to Sesshomaru's proposal and was willing to let her go with the demon lord.

"If you harm one hair on her head, I will personally hunt you down and cut off your head," Inuyasha growled to his brother, soft enough so that only those that were close enough and with youkai ears could hear his threat.

It was bad enough that his brother would know of his feelings for the injured miko. He did not need the others to know how he felt about her as well.

_'I will be out of the miko's debt soon. No one has power over me... even if it is for a favor.' _The tai youkai knew that if used correctly, a "mere" favor could cause the downfall of himself and his lands.

He did not like the thought anyone having power over him, be it demon, human, or hanyou.

**A/N**: For those of you wondering, Junsui means pure. Please read and review! I'll update as soon as I can.

Jennifer


	2. Chapter Two

**To Fulfill a Duty**

**Chapter Two**

**By: DeadBHunter**

"talking" _'thinking'_

**Chapter Two**

The sun shone brightly in her eyes, waking her up from what felt like a month of sleep.

'_Where am I?'_

Her mind drew a blank. The last thing she remembered was protecting Sesshomaru from Naraku's youki.

'_Strange...why would I help out him? And since when did the "great" Sesshomaru need help?'_

Rin was the only word that came to mind.

A pair of golden eyes interrupted her thoughts, blocking out the sight of sunlight filtering through the treetops. _'Inuyasha?'_

All that came out was, "I...ya...sa?"

"I am not Inuyasha, miko. If that is what you wish to know," replied Sesshomaru face blank, showing neither annoyance nor contempt.

"If you wish for water there is a stream not to far from where we are. Do not get lost, for I will not spend the time looking for someone as useless as you."

Kagome gave slight nod, wincing at the pain of moving her neck. She attempted to get up, but the only evidence of this was the grimace on her face and the sight of her muscles clenching and unclenching.

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow at the girl, amused, but not showing it. _'This will be harder than I thought. Ugh, more time with my brother's bitch.'_

Kagome looked at the demon lord for help, receiving nothing but an icy glare in return. Kagome gave an exasperated sigh and slowly dragged her weary body across the hard ground.

'_Great, another uniform ruined. And Mama just bought this one! Just what I need. Now what am I going to wear? I bet he's enjoying this. Who am I kidding? He probably thinks I'm a weak human for not being able to walk. How do I get myself in these situations?'_

By the time she reached the river, half the day had already past and it was time for lunch. Her face and back were covered with sweat, stinging her eyes and making her blink often.

She rinsed her face and took the long awaited drink, once again immersing herself in her thoughts.

_'And he said there was a river _nearby_! Really! It might be close for a full youkai, but being human and dragging yourself across the dirt is not fast! Are all men so inconsiderate?'_

As she reflected over her boy troubles, she noticed that only inu youkai were inconsiderate. Or more of, half inu youkai and full inu youkai were careless. Humans were much nicer, like Hojo, despite his odd habit of giving her gifts for being "sick" and Miroku was also more thoughtful than the two youkai. Even his tendency for groping women could be considered thoughtful under _extreme_ circumstances. She laughed outright at this thought. But at least he was considerate toward her feelings.

Mulling over her life, she stared at the scenery. Tall trees filled her vision, the spring rains filling the branches with leaves and blossoms. Birds could be heard singing further-off into the forest, creating a tune that always put the young girl's mind at rest.

The lush green grass called out for her to lie down and relax. Kagome rolled over on her back, and stared at the clouds, mindful of the sun's rays that threatened to momentarily blind her.

A small breeze made the tips of the grass sway in the wind, tickling the miko's toes. She breathed in deeply, and once again appreciated the fresh air in the Sengoku Jidai, which could only be found in the future far away from cities and towns, located in the remote countryside.

Thinking of the past would only make her homesick, and she did not need to show any weakness in front of the tai youkai. To keep her thoughts off of her family, she once again started to drag herself over the ground using her hands, praying that her legs would respond some time soon.

Sesshomaru had no idea long he would be spending with the miko. He recalled his half-brother's words, thankful, for once, that his brother made him give his word to bring the young priestess back.

Flashback

"You have to bring her back when she is fully healed," said Inuyasha, not trusting his brother to return with Kagome.

"I give my word that I will return with your miko when Junsui proclaims her fully healed, and not later. It is not my idea of amusement to keep a female ningen with me. The stench that all humans have will get all over this Sesshomaru."

'_I don't really have a choice. I know that son of a bitch will bring Kagome back, even though he's a bastard, he has honor. I guess my bastard half-brother will have to take Kagome. There is not much time before something bad happens to Kagome.'_

As much as he hated to admit it, Sesshomaru was the best choice to go with. He could travel faster, and that speed might save Kagome's life.

"Fine, you can take her. But remember you will bring her back when she is fully healed," was Inuyasha's reply, for once thinking things over.

End Flashback

Sesshomaru sat high up in a tree, waiting for the human wench to return.

When Sesshomaru's tail came into sight, she knew she could rest soon. Her body was fighting a losing battle against the dizziness that threatened to overcome her.

'_Finally, I can sleep.'_

What she didn't know was that by the time she would wake up, she wouldn't have any clue to where she was.

'_I thought my brother's wench would never get back. Despite what I said, if she were to get lost I would have been honor bound to save her.'_

Emerging from deep within his thoughts, he noticed that said miko wasn't moving. Her breathing had slowed down and her heartbeat was faint, even to his youkai ears.

_'Weak ningen must have fainted on the way back. How do these people survive?'_

With a sigh, the tai youkai used his tail and once again placed Kagome in his arm. Continuing on his walk westward, he hoped that she would stay unconscious until he arrived where Junsui resided in his lands. The demon lord was accustomed to traveling with little to no talking, and that was the way he liked it. One human girl would not be the one to change his lifelong habits.

He could sense someone getting closer, a youkai by the smell of it, a weak one. He had a suspicion that it was attracted the Shikon shards on Kagome's neck.

He softly dropped the bundle in his arms in front of a tree, and prepared for battle, hoping to spill the blood that dare challenged this Sesshomaru, Lord of the Western Lands.

The fight was over before he had even looked at the offending youaki. With a flick of his wrist, the youkai had disappeared, courtesy of his youkai whip. The poison in his whip was the same as the poison in his claws, but the poison did not kill the youkai. It was the sheer force behind the whip that killed the demon.

Sesshomaru was hoping for a bigger challenge and more bloodshed. He took pleasure in watching his enemies slowly die, drenched in their own blood, while he was untouched and staring coldly at his enemy. Unfortunately, the fight was over before blood could be shed.

'_No one challenge me and lives to tell the tale.'_

The tai youkai had no idea that this was about to change drastically as time went on and as he spent more and more time with his brother's wench.

After another two days of traveling, Inuyasha, Sango, Miroku, and Shippo, had finally returned to Kaede's village.

The weary group was seated in Kaede's hut and in their normal positions. Kagome was gone, and their circle was broken. The group looked smaller than it should have been, and it was missing the feeling of cheerfulness. Without Kagome, the group of shard hunters was slowly falling apart.

Sango told Kaede the story of Kagome getting injured and how she ended up getting taken to a miko called Junsui, with Inuyasha throwing in an insult about his "bastard brother" every now and then.

Kaede listened to their story with growing apprehension. She had been told of Sesshomaru and his homicidal behavior from Inuyasha, not to mention the occasional traveler from the Western Lands that told about a merciless demon lord who would not hesitate to kill anyone for getting in his way.

The thought of Kagome with the tai youkai made the old miko tremble. Not much worried her. Living with her sister when she was younger had hardened herself from the outside world. Kaede was still caring, but not many things could scare the miko. Unfortunately, fear for others she cared about, especially Kagome, who was like a granddaughter to her, would make her lose sleep.

"So what do you think we should do, Kaede-sama?" said Miroku.

"What we should have done in the first place, bouzu! Go to Sesshomaru and get Kagome back!" shouted Inuyasha.

"I believe I was asking Kaede-sama, Inuyasha," replied Miroku.

"Houshi-sama is right. Kaede-sama will know more about how to treat Kagome-chan's injuries than you will," Sango put in. "Besides, Inuyasha, I do not have the most faith in your judgment when it comes to either Kagome-chan or your half-brother. With both Kagome-chan and your brother invo..."

"Half-brother, _half_-brother!" interrupted Inuyasha.

Sango glared at Inuyasha for interrupting her.

"As I was saying, with both Kagome-chan and your _half_-brother involved, we should trust Kaede-sama's opinion."

"Feh," was her only reply as Inuyasha leaned back to listen.

"I believe," Kaede started, "that if you should let Kagome remain under Sesshomaru's care. By your description of her wounds, I do not have the knowledge to heal her. Without a skilled miko to heal her, it might take her over a month to heal. Wait in this village or gather shards for a month, but for at least a month. After a month, you should go to this miko, Junsui-sama, I believe that is her name, and find Kagome to bring her back."

"But we can't leave Kagome with Sesshomaru! What if he kills her? What if he loses her? What if..." Shippo whined.

"SHUT UP!" yelled Inuyasha, hands covering his ears." We'll go get her now! Kaede-baba's idea is stupid. We'll go right away!"

"No! We think that Kagome-sama should stay with Sesshomaru for a month, and no more. Then we can take her back," said Miroku, speaking for himself and Sango.

"If you don't listen, we can always seal you into a hut," threatened Sango, with a grin on her face.

'_I've always wanted to do this to him. After I saw how his meetings with Kikyo left Kagome-chan so hurt.'_

Inuyasha was silent. He did not want to leave Kagome with his half-brother or get sealed in a hut. He had already been trapped in a hut by Miroku and Kaede when his brother had previously stabbed him through his stomach.

"Besides, Inuyasha, the month will give Kagome-sama time to heal from her wounds. Do you want to take her and lessen her chances of surviving just because you wanted her back?" Miroku knew how to get Inuyasha to listen. All he had to do put Kagome's safety on the line.

"Feh."

The tai youkai held Kagome in his tail, and knocked on the door with his hand.

The door opened with a loud creak and a wheezy voice beckoned to Sesshomaru, "Come in."

**A/N: **Yay! I finished my second chapter! This one is a bit longer than my first one. And thanks to all my LOVELY reviewers for reviewing! R&R

Jennifer


	3. Chapter Three

**To Fulfill a Duty**

**Chapter Three**

**By: DeadBHunter**

"talking" _'thinking'_

**Chapter Three**

The tai youkai held Kagome in his tail, and knocked on the door with his hand.

The door opened with a loud creak and a wheezy voice beckoned to Sesshomaru, "Come in."

Sesshomaru strode into the home of the aged miko, and glanced around. All Sesshomaru could see were a couple cushions to sit on and a low table with a rusty pot of tea set on top with four cups arranged around it. Straight ahead was a piece of cloth that he assumed led to another room that was used for Junsui's patients.

The elderly miko bowed to Sesshomaru and asked, "What brings the tai youkai of the West to my home?"

Sesshomaru looked at the old miko. Her face was covered in wrinkles, but her eyes showed with a wisdom that was not common in many. She was dressed in the traditional miko garb, with dark red pants and a white top. Her head was covered in a thin layer of straight gray hair. Junsui was wearing the sandals commonly worn by those in her status.

"I have an injured girl called Kagome that needs to be healed; can you help her, miko?"

"I will do what I can, milord. But please inform me what happened to the girl. It will aid in returning her to health. I can sense that she was struck by an intense youki, but beyond that my powers cannot sense."

Sesshomaru grudgingly told the healer of the battle with his brother and Naraku's army, deliberately leaving out the part about how a human saved him. He told her that Naraku had fired a ball of youki at her and how she collapsed right there. Also included in his explanation was the time when the injured girl had awakened and crawled to the nearby river and back.

Junsui listened to Sesshomaru tell his tale, frowning when she heard that Kagome had struggled to the river unassisted.

Junsui sighed, "I know what to do in order to heal her, but it will take a long time, maybe even months for her to be as she was before."

"Explain, miko," was the demon lord's response.

"In order to heal Kagome-sama, I must remain in contact with her while I enter her mind and teach her how to use her miko powers to strengthen and heal herself. But she is basically untrained, it will probably take her about half a year to heal, maybe more or less depending how soon she can master her powers."

_'Half a year with my brother's wench!? I can do nothing to stop this; I have an obligation to uphold to this girl.'_ Inside Sesshomaru was disgusted, but his face remained unaffected.

"Fine, if it takes half a year to heal her, then start now. I will stay until she is healed. Hurry up for I have lands to protect and I do not want to spend my time watching over pathetic humans."

"Hai, Sesshomaru-sama. But I am required to start a ritual in order to enter the trance state with Kagome-sama."

"What do you need, Junsui?" replied Sesshomaru. He was not happy that his plans were being delayed.

"I will require some firewood, certain herbs that I have a list of, and some article that is connected to Kagome-sama in some way. Either by constant contact, sentimental value, or a spell of some sort," answered Junsui.

"Fine, I will return shortly with the materials required."

'_What should I bring for the last item? I do not know what the human possesses. I shall have to go back to her friends. She is turning out to be more trouble than she is worth.'_

"Inuyasha, stop worrying. Kagome-sama will be fine. Sesshomaru will not hurt her. He told us himself and he will not go against his word."

"Feh! Like we should trust that bastard! He stole Kagome."

"She will be fine!"

"Shows what you know! Take this!"

"What was that for!?"

"For not listening to me! Take this too!"

Sango, with Shippo perched on her shoulder, walked toward the Goshinboku and was greeted with the sight of Inuyasha throwing leaves, twigs, and whatever else he could get his claws on at Miroku, who was attempting to block the incoming projectiles with his staff. Both were panting and Miroku had leaves stuck in his hair and what looked like a fairly large stick caught in the rings of his staff. Miroku and Inuyasha were too busy to notice the two. When Sango and Shippo burst out laughing, Miroku and Inuyasha were shocked to say the least. Both fighters were frozen from shock. Inuyasha was in the middle of throwing a twig at Miroku while he was holding his staff as if it were a baseball bat, even though they had no idea what that was.

Miroku slowly turned around and walked toward Sango with a slight blush on his face. "My dear Sango, I am sorry tha-"

Before he could finish, a loud slap was heard along with the scream of "Hentai!" A loud thud of something large falling followed.

Sango muttered under her breath something about perverted people and cursed hands. She started walking back toward Kaede's hut with Inuyasha dragging Miroku by his foot.

'_I don't wanna grow up. Grown-ups are weird...'_

In the forest watching them was Sesshomaru; he had planned on asking the taijiya for something of Kagome's. Apparently, the whole group would have to be involved.

Sesshomaru jumped down from the tree branch he was sitting on and walking toward the group of shard hunters.

"Sesshomaru! Where is Kagome?! She better be fine!" shouted Inuyasha.

"Calm down, Inuyasha. Sesshomaru has promised us to heal Kagome-sama," was Miroku's reply.

"Then what is he doing here!?"

"That is a good question, Inuyasha," Miroku said as he turned toward Sesshomaru. "What are you doing here, Sesshomaru? I doubt you are here to visit, it must be about Kagome-sama."

"You are right, monk. The healer I have taken her to, Junsui, needs something that is connected to Kagome."

"What the hell do you mean by connected!?" yelled Inuyasha. To say the least, he wasn't happy about the delay with Kagome.

"The item must be connected to her by either constant contact, sentimental value, or by a spell. I have come to find such an item."

Throughout the conversation, Sango had been listening intently. And now she was wondering what sort of item was connected to Kagome.

'_There is always the prayer beads that are on Inuyasha, but only Kagome can take them off and she's not here. Maybe some part of the well might work, like a small bit of rock that makes up the well. I hope Inuyasha will be willing to go to Kagome's time to go ask her family for something.'_

Sango, Miroku, and Shippo were seated around the fire in Kaede's hut. Leaning against the wall, Sesshomaru watched the old miko search through her stock of herbs, looking for the specific ones that Junsui required to heal Kagome. Firewood was easy enough to get, all he had left was the item that was linked to Kagome. Because of that, Inuyasha had traveled down the well into Kagome's time to tell her family what had happened to Kagome and ask her mother for something that tied with her daughter.

Thirty minutes later, the three humans and two youkai were still in their same positions. A tense silence filled the air making Shippo, Miroku, and Sango edgy. The demon lord was as emotionless as ever.

Inuyasha burst through the door, slightly panting from running from the well to the village. In his hand was a bracelet. It was a simple silver chain that had a faint aura of light purple, like the power of Kagome's miko powers.

"What do you have, Inuyasha?" asked Shippo.

"I asked Kagome's mother what to bring, and she said to take this bracelet. She also said that Kagome's father gave this to her before he died. Something about hidden powers. Feh! As if something made by weak humans could have any "hidden powers." It's probably just a piece of junk."

"Inuyasha, Kagome-sama will not be pleased if you are saying bad things about her bracelet."

"Feh, like she'll ever find out."

"I must go now, give me the bracelet now."

Inuyasha handed his half brother the bracelet, watching him for signs of hostility. He growled a warning to his brother about losing that "worthless piece of junk."

Sesshomaru acted as if he hadn't heard him and walked out of the hut into the sunset, autumn leaves falling to the ground following in his footsteps as he walked the many miles toward Kagome.

Junsui waited for Sesshomaru to return. She had thought he would be back sooner, but she wasn't sure how far away Kagome's home was. She hoped he would be back soon. She could see the Shikon shards around Kagome's neck slowly turning a dark purple color. The darker they turned, the harder it would be for Kagome to recover.

After Sesshomaru had walked out of Inuyasha's sight, he had been rushing through the forests in his lands. _'The sooner I get there, the sooner she will be healed. And the sooner I will be rid of this annoying pest.'_

At this pace, he would probably arrive at the miko's home in about one hour. With Kagome, he could not travel at his full speed because the girl was unconscious and could not travel fast without her hanging on for herself.

Sango had been getting mad at the hanyou that was pacing throughout Kaede's hut. He had been like this since Sesshomaru had left, pacing back and forth. She could tell she wasn't the only one bothered by his behavior.

Shippo was glaring at Inuyasha's back, thinking about chewing up his ears like what he always did when he was being mean to Kagome.

Miroku was sitting against the wall, holding his staff in his hand. On his face was a grin that suggested he was thinking his rather perverted thoughts while staring at certain parts of Sango's body.

_Whack!_ "Hentai!" shouted Sango, holding her boomerang above her head, looking as if she had just hit a rather perverted houshi.

Shippo giggled at their antics and decided that Inuyasha couldn't be stopped and fell asleep on Sango's lap, wishing that it was Kagome's lap that he was resting on.

"Here it is," said Sesshomaru from inside Junsui's hut. He handed it to Junsui and told her that according to her family, this bracelet was supposed to have hidden powers.

"What sort of powers does this hold, Sesshomaru-sama?" questioned Junsui.

"Like I would bother myself in human affairs," scoffed Sesshomaru. "They do not concern me so I do trouble myself with them." In reality, the tai youkai had no idea what powers the bracelet had, but he was not about to admit that to a human.

"Yes, Sesshomaru-sama. I trust you have brought the required items, milord?"

"Of course. Now get on with it."

"Hai, Sesshomaru-sama. We first must prepare for the ritual."

Junsui started a fire with the wood that Sesshomaru brought. Once the fire was large enough, she added the herbs to the fire and started chanting a spell as the fire started to change color.

Sesshomaru watched as the fire changed to a light purple-pink color. He noticed a pink glow surround the old miko, and a soft purple glow radiate off of the unconscious girl.

**A/N:** I have to thank my lovely reviewers so THANKS!!! You guys really made me want to write! Sorry for the long time between updates, I couldn't think of how to introduce some things. Don't forget to **READ AND REVIEW!** I decided to TRY and update once a week, but I'm not sure how it's going to work out. Thanks!

Jennifer


	4. Chapter Four

**To Fulfill a Duty**

**Chapter Four**

**By: DeadBHunter**

"talking" _'thinking'_

**Chapter Four**

Amber eyes watched as the two humans in front of him began to glow. The elderly miko was touching a simple bracelet that was worn by a young girl that seemed to be only 17. He watched as the two mikos began to float about 4 inches above the ground.

Junsui looked around. She knew she was in Kagome's head, but did not know how everything was so unadulterated. She knew that this girl was a miko, but even they had some darkness in their hearts. Everybody did, or so she had thought.

As she looked around, she noticed some things that she had never seen before, like futon that was lifted above the ground on wooden stilts. She saw strange scrolls that opened up like folded paper.

Junsui walked out of the room and saw Kagome sitting under a large tree that seemed to be hundreds of years old.

"Kagome-sama?"

Kagome looked up in confusion and saw an old miko. "Who are you? Where am I? Where is Inuyasha?" She started sobbing, drawing up her knees and burying her head there. _'I want to go home.'_

Junsui looked on in pity. "Kagome-sama. I am Junsui. I have come here to heal you. A silver-haired demon told me that you had been hurt and it is my job to heal you. But I cannot do this. I must train your miko powers that will heal you."

'_A silver-haired demon? Could it be Inuyasha?'_ Kagome chided herself on the inside telling herself that Inuyasha didn't care. Even if he had, he had never shown it, and she was beginning to accept that. She was willing to be second best as long as she could be with her first love.

"Thank you, Junsui-sama, for helping me. It means a lot to me that you would try to help me," replied Kagome. Her mother had taught her manners and she always remembered to put them to good use.

"No thanks is necessary, Kagome-sama. I am a miko and it is my duty to help those in need. Now that we are through with that, we shall start working on your miko powers right away. The youkai who brought you here did not seem very happy when I said that it might take you 6 months to heal."

"Six months! That long?!"

"I am sorry. But it cannot be helped. The time may change depending how fast you master your miko powers. Some take longer, and others take less time. It all depends on the miko.

"Oh," was Kagome's ever intelligent reply, blushing slightly at her mistake.

"It is of no importance, Kagome-sama. We must improve your miko powers soon before the youkai who brought you here becomes impatient."

"He always was the impatient type," Kagome thought out loud with a grin on her face. Junsui chuckled as she looked at the happy expression on Kagome's face.

'_Oh, young love. So much happiness, as long as she does not get hurt in the end. She is too pure to deserve any pain from love,'_ thought Junsui.

"Shall we get started, Kagome-sama?" Junsui held out her hand to Kagome and the scenery changed from outside of the Goshinboku in the modern time, to a clearing in the forest with a small stream nearby. Kagome looked around in awe. The trees were tall with thick trunks that made everything else looked small. Kagome could practically smell the water in the river a couple of feet away. Turning around, she noticed that the clearing was almost the size of a fairly large room, with both the length and width being about 20 feet. She wondered where she was, and if this place really existed.

Unknown to Kagome, Junsui had taken the two into a clearing about 1 mile away from her home and Sesshomaru in the real world. She had remembered everything that had happened to her in this forest. She had birthed the second eldest son of the previous Lord of the Western Lands. About 2 miles away from here, when she was still young, she had started growing an herb that was rare in the Western Lands. She had hoped that one day, her plant would help someone in need.

"Where are we?" asked Kagome. She wasn't looking at the aged miko, but at the surrounding forest. No matter how much she looked, she could never get enough. The birds that occasionally perched on a nearby branch and watched the strangers in their forest were enough source of distraction for her.

Junsui eyes shown with amusement seeing how the younger miko was so entranced with the wildlife around her. _'She acts as if she has never seen a forest before.'_

"We are in the forest that is not too far away from where I live, Kagome-sama."

"Thank you, Junsui-sama. But please, don't call me Kagome-sama. I had forgotten to tell you the last time you called me that, seeing as we had just arrived into the forest. Kagome is just fine." Kagome had no idea why Junsui was addressing her as sama. She was of no noble birth and had done nothing to earn the lady's respect.

Junsui chuckled remembering her childish reaction toward the wooded area. "Very well. I will do as you please, Kagome-sa...Kagome. Please do not call me Junsui-sama either. I am just a simple miko."

Kagome grinned at the other miko and nodded showing that she accepted her request.

"So what are we going to start with, Junsui-bachan?" asked Kagome.

"I assume that you have little training, so we are first going to work on your control of your power. With control, you can do practically anything with your power if you are strong enough. Without control, your strength can take over your body."

"Um, okay."

"The first thing you must do is to look inside of yourself. When you look inside, the silver is your core being, and the light purple color is your power. Each person has a different color for their power when they look inside. It is the same color as their miko power. The more light purple you see, the more power and strength you have, Kagome. For now, I am going to teach you how to control your power. When you look inside yourself, I want you to try to control it with your mind. Emotions help you concentrate and boost your power."

"Okay," said Kagome and she got to work. _'Uh...first I look for my power. Check. Then, I try to control it with my mind. How do I do that?'_ Kagome looked at her inner self and noticed that the silver and purple were combined together. She wondered why they were merged together so she decided to ask Junsui.

"Junsui, why are the silver and purple mixed together. Shouldn't my essence and power be separate?"

"Child, in trained mikos, their power and self essence are clearly separated. They do not share their emotions so it is separate from their power. They have had the practice to control their power without feelings. You on the other hand, child, have not had training. When you feel strong emotions, your miko power helps. Basically, your emotions control your powers. Have you noticed that when your friends or someone else is in danger, that your miko powers help you?"

Kagome thought about this. She remembered when she had tried to save Sesshoumaru for Rin that she had run very fast. She had also noticed that she had glowed a faint purple color. While she was running, she had dismissed it as a trick of her imagination. She considered what Junsui had said and discovered that she was right. When she had been feeling strong emotions, her powers had surfaced trying to aide her.

"Junsui, is it bad for my powers to be linked to my emotions?"

"Child, you will soon learn that there is no right and wrong answer. Nothing is always yes or no. In this case, it is good to have some connection between the two, but not as much as you have now. Like I said earlier, your emotions help you control and boost your power. If your emotions have complete control over your power, then you will not be able to call on them when you need them. Those how have no control have to be feeling a strong emotion in order to use their powers. We will try to get your powers to respond to both your emotions and will."

"So my powers are controlled by my emotions because I don't have control, so they are all mixed together. So the only way I can fix this is to have control, right?" asked Kagome. All this information was just confusing her more.

"Yes, child. To start, we will have you heal this flower," said Junsui as she pulled a simple flower with a broken stem out of her clothes. "Normally, when healing, you will have to see what you are doing, like the bones and muscles. You will have to coax the muscles and bones to heal and knit together. This usually requires a lot of time to master, but for simple things, like this flower, all you need to do is to visualize in your head the flower healing. As you begin to master your powers more and more, the purple will gradually recede from the silver, showing that you have control over your powers."

Kagome was impressed at everything the miko had told her. _'I wonder if Kikyo's emotions have control over her power. Do most mikos have complete control?'_ Seeing as Junsui was about to speak again, she stored the questions in the back of her mind to ask the old miko later.

"I am teaching this to you now because your healing powers will be the ones to help you recover from getting hit by the youki. Your miko powers can also do more than just heal yourself. In time, you will be able to heal those that are far away from you, not just yourself and those that you are touching. Your other abilities and senses will also be increased, but which ones and by how much I do not know. Everybody is different as well as the power that they hold. Now that that is said, heal the flower."

Junsui handed Kagome the flower and watched as she closed her eyes and her eyebrows scrunched together in concentration.

'_She said I had to visualize the flower healing. To visualize the stem straightening and for the wilted petals to grow back.'_

Junsui saw beads of sweat drip down from Kagome's forehead, but the flower was not repaired.

"Kagome, in order for the flower to mend, you must want this to happen. You must not do this just because I told you to do it. You must yearn for the flowers to be restored to health. You can do it, child."

'_Come on, Kagome! You can do it. You are not weak. You know it. You just have to prove it to Inuyasha!'_ thought Kagome. Unknown to her, the dying flower began to bloom once again. The color was restored and the drooping leaves and limp petals began to lift themselves up again. The most noticeable part was the bent stem that started to straighten and gradually grow longer and longer.

Kagome opened her eyes and grinned at the sight that greeted her. The once simple, white flower had grown larger. The white petals had turned a light purple shade and a fading glow still surrounded it.

Junsui was impressed. _'Many strong mikos could not have done this on their first day of training. This girl is something special indeed.'_

"Before I forget Kagome, to link to your mind, I had to use a bracelet that your silver-haired demon had brought me. He said it had magical attributes and that your father had given this to you before he died." Junsui handed Kagome the silver chain from her pocket and noticed that its aura had grown.

"Thank you, Junsui, for all your time and help you spent on me. Arigato."

"Your welcome, Kagome. But I must go now for there is a demon waiting in the real world for news of your health. I fear he may become impatient. But you have done well and keep on practicing."

"I will," said Kagome to the fading figure of Junsui.

Sesshoumaru had been waiting for hours. He had been resting against the wall of the hut, watching the two mikos in Kagome's mind. Many thought that the tai youkai had a limitless amount of patience. Right now, his patience was just about gone. He had been waiting until dawn for Junsui to wake up. He heard Junsui's pulse speed up signifying that she was close to awakening. He stood up and stretched his sore back. Eight hours of sleeping sitting up could do that to someone.

As Junsui awakened, she heard her lord ask her when the miko was going to be well again.

"My lord, she has done better than most mikos have done in a week. She has the power and natural instinct to heal. She shall probably be healed in less than the six months that I have told you, Lord Sesshoumaru. She has enough power to completely heal herself if she can control them. She truly is remarkable."

Sesshoumaru nodded his head in acknowledgement and acceptance. He was secretly satisfied with the way things had been going. He was expected to be home two months sooner than planned, ridding himself of the presence of the two ningens that had somehow found themselves under his care.

"Thank god that bastard brother of mine has finally left. I can smell him throughout the hut!" Inuyasha stomped off through the door, probably to the Goshinboku to ponder his half-brother and Kagome's predicament.

The three stared at the retreating form of their friend. They were all sad about Kagome being hurt and taken away, but the hanyou seemed to be taking it the worst. He was moodier than usual and became angered easier.

"I am going to bed, houshi-sama, Shippo."

"Would you like me to j..."

Sango stood, holding Hiraikotsu as if she had just hit something, or in this someone.

"Good night, Shippo"

"G'night."

'_I wish Kagome was here,'_ Shippo thought, not for the last time.

**A/N:** Sorry about the long time between updates. I'm kind of slow about that. Hehe..._anyways_ I have to thank my reviewers, they always want to make me write more! And thanks to RyuuAngel for betaing my work. Thanks to all of you! Remember...A story worth reading is a story worth reviewing...lol. That was written by me so I didn't copy anyone's work!

Jennifer


	5. Chapter Five

**To Fulfill a Duty**

**Chapter Five**

**By: DeadBHunter**

"talking _'thinking'_

**Chapter Five**

He was not pleased, to say the least. He had been watching the miko for a while now, and she just had to disappear while Kagura was disobeying him by searching for Sesshomaru again.

_'Again she tries fruitlessly to disobey me. No one can disobey me. What a fool she was to think that I was so preoccupied with watching Her, that I wouldn't notice her leave. She is mine. I hold her heart and it is mine to do with as I please. Her life rests in my hands.'_

"Junsui, when is the next time you are going to go train her?"

_'I assume he means Kagome by "her." He's so stubborn. Why can't he call Kagome by her name?'_ Junsui sighed in defeat and leaned back against the wall.

"I will train her once again this afternoon about two hours after noon if it pleases you, my lord. She will have had about eight hours of rest. That should be sufficient for her to regain her strength."

It was about 6:30 and Junsui's mind had been present in this world for about half an hour. During this time, she had made herself a pot of tea and sat down against the wall. After Sesshomaru had inquired about Kagome's well being, he too sat down, but kept his back straight in perfect posture like always. They had been sitting together in an awkward silence for the rest of the time with Junsui gently blowing on her steaming tea.

"Eat something before you leave."

Junsui looked up from her cup and asked, "Why is that, my lord."

"Do you dare question my orders, miko?" threatened Sesshomaru. _'No one dares question me, lord and ruler of the Western Lands.'_

"My apologies, Sesshomaru-sama. I will start right away." Junsui set her cup on the table and stood up. She walked outside to the pile of firewood the men of the nearby village brought in every couple of months in thanks for her assistance in curing a sickness that threatened young and old alike.

Sesshomaru watched Junsui come in a little later carrying some firewood and some vegetables that he assumed came from the garden growing behind the hut.

Junsui started a fire and went to get a pot from the cabinet and fill it up with water from the river near the clearing in the woods. By the time she got back with the water, the flame was flickering an orange and red color with an occasional trace of blue every now and then. (A/N: Real fire does turn blue, but only when it's really hot. When it is at its hottest, it turns white.) She set the pot on the fire and waited for the water to boil while she was cutting up the vegetables for the soup that she was preparing.

By the time the soup was ready it was nearing midday and Sesshomaru had just been sitting against the wall.

"Would you like some soup, Sesshomaru-sama?"

"No."

"Wh-," she started to say, but she stopped in the middle remembering Sesshomaru's previous response to her questioning. "Hai, milord," she quickly corrected herself.

Junsui went to get a bowl and spoon from the same cabinet as the pot. As she stirred the soup, she thought about the girl that she was helping.

_'Since when does Sesshomaru-sama help humans? Many travelers had come to me and spoke in fear of the tai youkai of the West who was rumored to be ruthless and could kill children without any regrets. They say that humans are the thing that he despises so. If that is true, then why would he help this girl? He clearly does not want to spend time here healing her. Perhaps there is more to this girl than meets the eye.'_

Junsui carefully spooned the soup into her bowl and watched the tai youkai relax. His eyes were closed, but she could tell that he was attuned to all that was happening around him. She could feel his aura probing around for intruders.

She shivered as his aura encountered hers. It was cold and gave off no emotion unlike others. She was tempted to believe that he did not have any emotions at all. The few emotions she had ever seen from him had always been annoyance and anger. Even then, the only proof of this was his mouth which would thin out and become a fine line. That could hardy be counted as emotions.

At two, Junsui prepared the fire for entering the trance state and touched the bracelet on Kagome's wrist. The very first time Junsui had to be holding the bracelet. But after that, all she had to do was touch the piece of jewelry. Once again, the fire between the two mikos changed color as well as the mikos themselves.

"Kagome? Where are you, child. I have come to continue your training."

"Coming, Junsui, I am just finishing lunch." Kagome scrambled out of the kitchen of her home and was once again greeted with the sight of the Goshinboku.

"Let us leave," was Kagome's only warning before the two were transported to the same clearing in the forest.

Kagome looked around, a pleased smile coming to her face again. The forest never ceased to amaze her. It was so wild and uncultivated. Man had not tamed the forests here in the Sengoku Jidai, but in the future, wilderness was practically nonexistent. Human kind had destroyed the once large woods. Animals were driven out of there ancestral homes and caged in preserves that were crowded with others that did not belong there. (A/N: I'm kind of an environmentalist.)

"So what are we going to do today, Junsui?" asked Kagome, finally turning her attention to the miko beside her.

"We are going to improve your healing abilities further. Healing a flower or plant is easier than healing an animal. Animals have a more complicated structure and they can move while you are helping them, but the ones that you the most feelings toward are the hardest and easiest to heal, including yourself. You have an unlimited amount of power because your emotions help feed your power. But your emotions may also be the undoing of this. Because you have feelings for them, you may be rushed to heal them and neglect something. You first need to learn some more control and be able to heal animals before you can heal yourself."

Junsui walked to a nearby bush, pulled back a couple of branches, and revealed a mouse with its right leg bent at an odd angle.

"This mouse has broken the bone in its right leg. It is a clean break so only the bone needs to be repaired. All the muscles and tendons are fine. This should be easier because bone is easier to mend then the others. Now remember what I told you before, you must picture the bone mending, like you did with the flower."

"I'll try, Junsui."

Kagome looked for the miko power inside of her. She beckoned to it and imagined the bone mending. At first, it looked like nothing was happening. She was almost ready to give up. Concentrating harder, the bone was growing, slowly at first, but as she became more immersed in her work, the bone began to grow faster. As she watched the bone knit together, she could hear Junsui in the back of her mind congratulating her on a job well done.

"Well done, Kagome. But before I go, I would like to ask you some questions. How did you come to be in the silver-haired youkai's charge? He doesn't seem like the type to care. From what I have heard, he does not share his emotions; many say he does not have any."

"Well truthfully, when I first met him, I was scared. He tried to kill me because I interfered with what he wanted, at that time he wanted to gain power. But after a couple of years, it seemed like he didn't want power. It was like he just wanted to enjoy the road getting there. Since then, I have been traveling with him for about three years."

Junsui just nodded her head. _'Many said that Sesshomaru-sama had been traveling with a human girl, but I never thought that it was THIS girl. They said that the girl was about 7 or eight. But then again, they said that she seemed happy to be under his care. Maybe Kagome is the girl he has been taking care of.'_

Kagome watched as Junsui's face turned from thoughtful to confused.

"I see. I must leave soon; your protector is not very patient."

Junsui decided to accept Kagome's story because she was not one to lie. She may not have known her for very long, but she could tell that someone with a heart as pure as hers would not lie.

"Keep practicing your magic, child. Heal the forest, make things grow. You were born with a gift, child. You should use it."

"I will, Junsui. Tell Him I said hi!"

"Hai, child."

Junsui opened her eyes and was greeted with the sight of the roof of her hut. She had been laying on a futon while she was in Kagome's mind.

"I am back, Sesshomaru-sama. Do you wish for me to do anything for you?"

"Tell me how the girl is doing."

"She is doing fine. As I told you before, it will probably take her about four months to heal now. It may take less depending on how fast she will master the later lessons. The basics are the hardest of all to learn. Once she has perfected the basics, then the other lessons should move faster."

"I will leave now to hunt for food."

"It is not necessary, Sesshomaru-sama."

"I will not go back on my honor, no matter that it is beneath me. I will hunt for you. I promised that I would take care of her, and that is what I will do, whether directly or indirectly."

"Hai, Sesshomaru-sama."

Sesshomaru ran swiftly and silently through the forest, looking for deer.

_'I cannot believe that I am lowering myself to hunt for humans. Not only that, I have been sleeping outside in trees which is not befitting for a lord of my stature. It is not like me to help those that are too weak to help themselves.'_

He quickly killed an elderly deer, lingering in the back of the fleeing herd, too slow to keep up and escape death. He fetched it quickly, hoisting it over his shoulder before heading back to the hut that housed his charge and her healer. He continued his thoughts.

'_Only the strong survive.''_

**A/N:** I hope you liked this chapter! It took forever to write. Chappie 6 coming soon! Read and review!

Jennifer


	6. Chapter Six

**To Fulfill a Duty**

**Chapter Six**

**By: DeadBHunter**

"talking" _'thinking'_

**Chapter Six**

Junsui was sitting by the table in her home grinding herbs. Sesshomaru was out hunting for food, even though she didn't need it. She was rather self-reliant. She had put away her herbs and got out some salt to preserve whatever Sesshomaru was going to bring back. Junsui looked up from her work and saw a dead dear coming straight at her. She leapt away, and clutched her frantically beating heart. Right where she was sitting was the corpse of a dear covered with blood. Five claw marks could be seen going along its neck, clearly showing how it had been killed. She fought the urge to vomit her meager lunch of soup over the table. She sat down swiftly next to the dead deer and looked for the tai youkai while trying to calm her racing heart.

'_For a second, I thought that my life would be over!'_

"Welcome back, Sesshomaru-sama. I see you have brought back something to eat."

"Here is the food as promised."

"I do not need fo-"

Sesshomaru gave the already frightened miko an icy glare, making her even more scared if possible.

"Thank you, Sesshomaru-sama," she quickly corrected.

Sesshomaru nodded his head in recognition.

3 weeks later

"Very good, Kagome. You may yet be healed soon," Junsui praised.

Kagome beamed at the complement, pleased at her own accomplishments.

"Do you wish to see the youkai that brought you here, child? If you have been traveling with him for a while, I suppose that you miss him," questioned Junsui. She knew from experience that many did not like to be separated from those that they care about for a long time. Her patients with transferable diseases that had been isolated from their families for about a week had become unhappy and forlorn. It was remarkable that Kagome, still a child in her eyes, could be so cheerful when the only person that she had seen for three weeks was an old miko that she had known for less than a month.

"I would like to see him, if it's not too much trouble."

"Of course, child. It is no problem at all. Just give me the bracelet on your right wrist. That is all I need to bring him here."

'_Does she mean it? Will I get to see Inuyasha again, after all this time?'_ Kagome handed Junsui the silver chain on her wrist.

"Inuyasha, slow down! We still have a week to reach Kagome-sama and Sesshomaru. Besides, we are almost there. You said that we would reach there around noon," said Miroku.

"I just don't want the bastard to hurt Kagome," Inuyasha said. "Besides, if he does, then it will take us longer to get the jewel shards."

Sango sighed. _'And he almost admitted that he cared for Kagome-chan! He just HAD TO ruin it with his obsession about the Shikon no Tama.'_ Slap Miroku walked away rubbing his sore face.

'_Why do men have to be such bakas!'_

"Inuyasha, we are almost at Junsui-sama's home. We will be there in less then half a day. Kagome-chan will be fine until then. We don't need to rush," reasoned Sango. _'At least I hope so...'_

"Feh. You humans are so slow." Despite his words, Inuyasha slowed down to allow Sango and Miroku to take a break. Kirara had been resting in Sango's arms, and Miroku had Shippo on his shoulder.

"Arigato, Inuyasha. If Kagome-chan were here, she would be happy with you."

"Sesshomaru-sama, Kagome has been doing well, and she would like for you to visit her. Would you like to come?" asked Junsui.

"I will visit her, miko."

"Hai, my lord. I will send word of your visit."

"Sesshomaru-sama, the herbs are prepared and the fire is set. I have placed wards around my home to prevent intruders while we are in the trance state. All we need to do is to touch Kagome's bracelet. Is there anything else you need to do before we leave, my lord?"

"Nothing."

Junsui placed the bracelet in Sesshomaru's hand. The bracelet's aura turned a darker purple and began to purify Sesshomaru's hand. Just as quickly, the bracelet's aura returned to its normal shade and his hand was healed. Both Sesshomaru and Junsui noticed this, but not a word was exchanged between the two.

Junsui began to chant and once again an aura around the fire and mikos' became visible, but this time Sesshomaru's became visible as well. Just as his vision started to fade, he pulled his hand away from the bracelet and spoke.

"Miko, stop. My half-brother is here. I must pay him a visit."

"Hai, Sesshomaru-sama. I will wait for your return." Junsui felt a breeze, and Sesshomaru was out the door before she was even finished.

"Inuyasha, why are you here on my lands? I have not given you permission to come here, nor is your miko healed." Sesshomaru glared at his brother.

"I'm here for Kagome, you bastard! If you weren't with us at the battle then she would be fine. It is your fault that she's hurt! We're coming to bring her back with us! The longer it takes the more Shikon shards Naraku will get!" retorted Inuyasha.

"Hanyou," Sesshomaru spat out. "I did not ask for your wench to risk her life for me. I have given you my word that she will be returned when she is healed. At the moment, she is not yet healed. I would not want to spend more time with humans then I must."

"Too bad, Sesshomaru! We need her back! How are we supposed to find Shikon shards without our detector?"

"Inuyasha, we must listen to Sesshomaru-sama this time. We don't know how bad Kagome-sama's condition is. Moving her too far may cause her injury to get worse," said Miroku, always the voice of reason.

"Houshi-sama is right, Inuyasha. We can't be sure that Kagome-chan will survive the trip all the way back to Kaede-bachan's hut." Sango was hoping that she was wrong about Kagome's condition. But she still hoped Inuyasha would soon see it from their point-of-view.

"Inuyasha, we have to get Kagome back. Sesshomaru might do something bad to her! We can't trust him," whined Shippo.

"Kitsune, my honor will not allow me to hurt the miko. She has put her life at stake to save mine, and I have promised my half-brother that I will not kill her nor harm her. I will bring her back when she is fully healed," Sesshomaru replied.

"As if a bastard like you would bring Kagome back! We need her to find Shikon shards!" Inuyasha moved into a fighting stance and his right hand drifted slowly to his sword.

Sesshomaru swiftly drew out his sword and pointed it at Inuyasha's neck. "Hanyou, I have already told you once and I will not repeat myself again. When the girl is fully healed, I shall bring her to you. If you trespass on my lands looking for your wench then I will kill you." With that said, Sesshomaru turned around and sheathed his sword in one motion and flew off on his youki cloud back to the hut with a waiting miko and Kagome.

"Miko, is everything still ready for our departure?" interrogated Sesshomaru.

"Hai, Sesshomaru-sama. Everything is prepared for us to enter Kagome's mind," answered Junsui.

Again, Junsui gave a portion of the bracelet for the tai youkai to hold and started chanting while sprinkling herbs into the fire. A purple glow surrounded Kagome and the bracelet. Junsui and Sesshomaru were holding the bracelet and like Kagome, were surrounded by a glow, but one was pink and the other was a dark blue.

Kagome's mind

Sesshomaru looked around and noticed many things that he had never seen before. Strange and unfamiliar items, made of metals and materials he had never encountered before, could be seen through the glass on the side of the house. He began to question the origins of this human.

"Child," called Junsui to Kagome who was reading a book in the shade of the Goshinboku.

Kagome looked up and greeted Junsui, not really paying attention to the miko. She was too busy looking for Inuyasha and his familiar silver hair and golden eyes.

"SESSHOMARU!?!"

**A/N:** Yea...yea... I know it was short, but it was interesting at least! That's better than nothing! Anyways...to answer some questions...in Chapter Five when Kagome and Junsui were talking about the youkai that brought Kagome here, Junsui didn't say Sesshomaru's name out of respect, and it was supposedly obvious to each other who they were talking about. And Kagome didn't say Inuyasha's name because she had no reason to. That's all I have to say!


	7. Chapter Seven

**To Fulfill a Duty**

**Chapter Seven**

**By: DeadBHunter**

"talking" _'thinking'_

**Previous Chapter: Chapter Six**

"Child," Junsui called to Kagome who was reading a book in the shade of the Goshinboku.

Kagome looked up and greeted Junsui, not really paying attention to the miko. She was too busy looking for Inuyasha and his familiar silver hair and golden eyes.

"SESSHOMARU!?!"

**Chapter Seven**

'_SESSHOMARU? What is he doing here! If he hurt any of my friends...ooooooh... There'll be hell to pay!"_

"Why are you here!?! What are you doing here!?! You better not have hurt any of my friends!" Kagome shouted at the Tai youkai.

"Bitch," Sesshomaru interrupted.

Kagome continued her rant as if he had not spoken one word. "Inuyasha is supposed to be here, not you!"

"Wench," Sesshomaru cut in again.

"Oh yea! My name is Kagome! Not bitch, wench, or whatever else comes to your mind!"

"Kagome," Sesshomaru said.

_'Eh? When did he start listening to me? Why did he call me by my name? Since when did he call HUMANS' by their names?'_ Kagome had conveniently forgotten that she had practically screamed at Sesshomaru to call her by her name.

Sesshomaru watched the girl's face change from one of anger to one of confusion. He noticed her silence after he called her name, and stored it in the back of his mind for future use.

"Remember who you are speaking to," Sesshomaru warned Kagome. "I will not tolerate any disrespect." He glared at her, slightly amused at the sight of her cringing away from him.

"I don't care who you are! You don't deserve any respect! You hurt Inuyasha and my friends! Why else would you be here? Inuyasha brought me here, not you! Junsui said so!"

At this, Sesshomaru turned and glared at the aged miko at his side. "You dare lie and replace my actions with those of my hanyou brother's?"

"I would never do such a thing, my lord. I had told Kagome that you brought her hear and asked her if she would like you to visit her, and she sai-"

Before Junsui could finish, Kagome butt in. "You told me that Inuyasha brought me here. You asked if I wanted him to visit and I said yes!" Kagome accused.

"I did not, child. You assumed that on your own. I said that a silver-haired youkai had brought you here and was waiting for you to heal. I never said that it was the hanyou that I help birth many years ago."

"You assisted Inuyasha's mother in his birth?" Kagome asked, with disbelief in her eyes. Thoughts about Sesshomaru had left her mind to be replaced with those of Inuyasha. Her once loud voice had turned soft at the mention of Inuyasha's birth.

"Hai, child. It was many years ago, yet this forest still remembers that day."

"If that's so, then why are you here, Sesshomaru?" questioned Kagome. "I thought you hated humans. Why would you save a human, your brother's traveling companion at that?"

"You will address me as Sesshomaru-_sama_," ordered Sesshomaru. "I only saved you to uphold my honor. Had you not saved me, then I would have never returned the favor. I did not ask you to save me, but my honor will not let me watch you die at the hands of the hanyou Naraku, no matter how foolish your actions were."

'_What a jerk! He could at least thank me, instead of talking about his honor!'_ Kagome thought angrily.

"That may be true, Sesshomaru-_sama_," she said, saying the "sama" sarcastically, "but then why isn't Inuyasha here?"

"The hanyou, with his inferior abilities and tainted blood, would not be able to keep up with my pace, the pace of a full-blooded inu-youkai. You would have arrived here later, something that my honor would not allow."

"Okay," Kagome said hesitantly. "So when do I get to go back to Inuyasha and my friends?"

"I have told my half-brother and your companions that I will bring you back when Junsui claims that you are fully healed. Before then, you must stay here, away from your traveling companions. I highly doubt any of them are capable of healing injuries such as the ones you sustained."

"That's not true! Kaede-bachan is a good healer. She's healed me and my friends more times then I can count! Sango-chan is also helpful when she knows what to do!" Kagome retorted, getting more and more worked up.

"None of these people are qualified or skilled enough to heal injuries suffered by a dark youki. Few are capable of doing so, and all of those who can, reside in my lands."

"No! I've met others that can heal youki wounds! Jinenji, someone that I have met while searching for Shikon shards, has many rare herbs that can heal almost any wound!" Kagome shouted at him.

"You are talking about the hanyou, are you not? The one that was shunned by the villagers for his tainted blood, much like my half-brother," Sesshomaru sneered.

"Even if there are no 'qualified healers' near Inuyasha's Forest, I can still recover there! My friends will help me. Can't I just stay in Kaede's village?"

Sesshomaru acquired a tinted red on the edge of his eyes, unused to having his orders unheeded immediately. He did not like it one bit. Utilizing his youkai speed, he stepped toward Kagome and lifted her up with his hand.

"Do not question my decisions, human. Do not test me." His pale, strong hand tightened on her slender throat. She gagged and her blue eyes rolled back in her head. "Obey my orders. If you have a death wish, then tell me now. You may die now if you so desire."

Kagome was having a hard time breathing with Sesshomaru's hand around her neck. She could see a faint green glow underneath her chin and knew that it was Sesshomaru's poison. Her hair fluttered with the wind and seemed to slap at his hand. From blurry eyes, she saw the grass ripple in the wind, like waves of the ocean.

"Hai, Sesshomaru-sama. I will stay as you wish," Kagome choked out, her eyes glazing over slightly. Her own hands grasped desperately at his, trying to loosen his hold. From behind them, Junsui watched in increasing agitation. Her smooth face showed no sign of her emotion, despite the worry she was feeling for Kagome.

Sesshomaru dropped the struggling girl unceremoniously on the ground and turned to look at Junsui. "Come, we will leave now."

"As you wish, Sesshomaru-sama."

Sesshomaru spared one last glance at Kagome, and in a flutter of cloth, Sesshomaru and Junsui faded away from sight, leaving Kagome to recover and accept the fact that Sesshomaru was her new keeper.

In the normal world

Both youkai and miko had left the trance state and had entered the normal world.

"Miko," Sesshomaru started, "remove your wards now."

"Hai, Sesshomaru-sama," she replied. Junsui hurriedly walked toward the edge of her home to remove the wards she had set to protect the two from any visitors while they were in the trance state.

When Junsui had finished taking off the wards, Sesshomaru left for the forest. He settled himself in the high branches of a tree, and dozed off after he had scanned the surrounding area for any signs of trouble. And for other youkai that might recognize the Lord of the Western Lands sleeping in trees outside of a human dwelling, like a dog left outside in the rain.

Junsui banked the fire in her hut, and laid out her futon. She checked on Kagome one last time, making sure that the silver bracelet was once again in its rightful place on Kagome's wrist, and that she was warm for the night.

Outside, a wolf howled, calling to its pack. Two heads turned toward the noise and thought of their families that had long ago left the Earth.

Kaede's village

"That bastard! That FUCKING bastard!"

"Calm down, Inuyasha. Cutting down trees will not bring Kagome back, even if it will help Kaede survive the oncoming winter. Sesshomaru-sama gave his word to bring Kagome back when she is healed. His honor forced him to heal Kagome, and will make him return Kagome to us. Do not worry, Inuyasha. If he has one thing, then it is honor," Miroku wisely said.

Without Kagome around, Inuyasha began losing his temper more and more often. Shippo became less energetic and never seemed in the mood to tease the grumpy hanyou. Sango seemed to spend increasing lengths of time in the hot springs taking a bath. Even Miroku was affected. His lecherous ways had come to a temporary standstill. Without Kagome in their midst, morals were low and a silence had started to overcome the once lively talking of the group of friends, now, minus one human girl.

**A/N:** Here's Chapter 7! I think my chapters are getting shorter and shorter sigh I apologize for getting this one out kind of late, its already late Friday night! Gomen nasai, everyone! Don't forget to review and add to the little pile of reviews of collected!


	8. Chapter Eight

**To Fulfill a Duty**

**Chapter Eight**

**By: DeadBHunter**

"talking" _'thinking'_

**Chapter Eight**

A harsh voice roused the neko, kitsune, taijiya, and houshi, in the hut. The neko woke up and trotted outside of the hut while the kitsune simply rolled over grumbled something about crazy people and their problems. The taijiya had been sleeping peacefully until a cursed hand found its way to her body. A resounding slap filled the air and a red faced houshi rubbed his face, attempting to dispel the stinging sensation with a grin on his face.

"Oi, Sango! Hurry up and make breakfast! Later, you guys can go do whatever you want, we have to stay in the village because we don't know when Sesshomaru will come back with Kagome."

The two humans glanced at each other, knowing that it was rare for their hanyou friend to stop the shard hunt for anything, besides the walking clay pot.

A whirlwind approached the group of travelers and stopped in front of Inuyasha, unnoticed by the others in the party. The winds died down, revealing a youkai with light blue eyes and a frown on his face. His black hair was tied up and kept out of his eyes with a brown headband.

"Dog-crap, where's my woman? You better not have lost her!" Kouga threatened Inuyasha.

Heads turned to stare at the ookami youkai who was standing in front of the hanyou. Kouga scowled at the group of shard hunters, seeing everyone but Kagome. Quickly Inuyasha drew his sword and leveled it at the intruder.

Kouga, after using his senses to check for Kagome, shouted at the offending inu hanyou. "You really are shit! How could you lose Kagome? I was going to collect her after I had defeated Naraku on my own, but now I'm going to have to keep her with me because a pathetic hanyou can't even remember where he left my woman!"

"You stinking ookami! I didn't lose her! Sesshomaru took her aw-"

"I don't care who the fuck this Sesshomaru guy is! He has my woman and I'm going to get her back and she will be my mate and bare me many pups!" he declared, earning a growl from the hanyou before him.

Inuyasha's hands on his already drawn sword tightened, causing his knuckles to turn an unearthly white. "She's not your woman!" Inuyasha shouted back, adding fuel to the already heated conversation.

"What would you know, Dog-shit. You already have that corpse to keep you happy. Kagome is too good for you and your dirty blood. No hanyou can protect her! Look at your clay pot, look what happened to her! You killed her; I'm not going to let the same thing happen to Kagome!"

"Keep your nose where it belongs, wolf! You don't know anything about what happened fifty-two years ago!"

"What else is their to know? You betrayed her! She died because of you. She died because of your claws that you so carelessly slashed threw the woman that you supposedly loved!"

Inuyasha lowered his head and softly whispered, "That won't happen again. Not to Kagome. She doesn't deserve it."

"That's right," Kouga said so everyone could hear. "That's why I'm taking her back with me. That way my pack can protect her while I go kill Naraku."

"Bastard," Inuyasha yelled, and sprang up from his fighting stance to make a wild swing at Kouga with Testusaiga.

Kouga quickly dodged out of the way and taunted him. "Only a hanyou fights with a sword. Real youkai fight with their claws and fists, what they were born with!"

Inuyasha, without a thought, tossed his sword aside and attempted to punch the ookami in front of him. Kouga once again evaded his attack and retaliated with a swipe of his claws, effectively drawing blood from Inuyasha's arm.

Seeing his blood, Inuyasha quickly bathed his claws in his blood and shouted, "Hijjin Tessuo!"

Blades of Inuyasha's blood raced toward Kouga. Only one reached its mark and the others created gashes in the ground, one almost hitting Sango and Miroku on the side.

The four spectators watched Inuyasha and Kouga battle, none knowing what to do. Previously, Kagome had been able to separate the two with a "sit" or by simply coming between the two. Now, Kagome was in the Western Lands far away, possibly resting somewhere on a futon or outside watching the scenery.

They were quickly jerked out of their thoughts when they heard the sound of flesh ripping. Kouga, with the shards in his legs, had rushed up to Inuyasha and slashed at him, sending him crashing into a tree. The tree was now slightly bent and blood could be seen, splattered onto the trunk.

Kouga wiped the blood off from his claws and once light blue eyes were now infected with slight traces of red. He walked up to Inuyasha and boasted, "Ha, you lost, Dog-crap. You can't even fight for your woman. When I find her, I will take her to my den and she will bare my pups."

Once again, Inuyasha growled at this, but this time, when Inuyasha looked up, red was invading and blocking out the gold of his eyes and his pupils were shrinking until they were tiny pinpricks in his eyes.

"You fucking wolf, she's MINE!"

With that, Inuyasha charged at Kouga, who was still oblivious to the fact that Inuyasha now had the speed and strength of a full youkai but no control to even out the sudden change.

Kagome's mind

Junsui was back the next day, but this time she was alone. Junsui arrived in front of the Goshinboku and saw Kagome sitting on the ground. The ground around her was free of all leaves, but in directly in front of here was a pile of green leaves. Normally, this sight would have been puzzling for the old miko, but since it was fall, the once simple puzzlement turned into total confusion. The leaves on the Goshinboku were dying and falling off the tree in spectacular arrays of colors. Yellow, orange, red, and brown leaves filled the trees and covered the ground farther away from Kagome. The green leaves in the pile in front of Kagome appeared to have been picked off the trees in the spring, not seemingly to have fallen off them naturally.

Junsi slowly walked toward the young miko, bewilderment clearly written on her face. As she approached, she took note that Kagome had not yet acknowledged the elderly miko approaching. She was so immersed in what she was doing that she did not become aware of the droplets of sweat that were gradually sliding down from her forhead and dotting the white color of her mini skirt.

"Kagome," Junsui called. "What are you doing?"

Kagome looked up from her work. Her eyes held surprise and a trace of guilt. Junsui wondered what would cause the girl to feel guilty. Surprise was expected, but not guilt.

"I'm practicing, Junsui," Kagome responded.

"Practicing what, child?"

"I'm practicing my healing powers. These green leaves used to be different colors. But I decided to practice using my healing powers by restoring their green color!" Kagome said excitedly.

"If I may ask, why were you feeling guilty?"

"Well," Kagome began sheepishly, "I know that Sesshomaru brought me here and everything, but I don't really want to spend so much time with him. I appreciate him bringing me here and finding you to help me, just, well, I don't know if I can trust him. I want to get away from him and return to Inuyasha and my friends. I feel guilty because he worked so hard. He had to convince Inuyasha to let him bring me here. I know that's not easy, Inuyasha can be really stubborn sometimes," she said with a smile.

_'She seems as if she knows from experience that Inuyasha is stubborn. Perhaps there is more between the two than just friendship. Could it be that the hanyou is more than just a friend? More than just love for a sibling? But love_

"Also, I know that he won't kill me. But what happens when he loses control, or if he wants to kill me? He can, I know he can. But I also know he has this little girl with him. I know that he won't kill me, but he has before, and that's what really scares me sometimes, that he might do it again." Kagome added with her head down. She was looking at her feet, not meeting the miko's eyes for fear of seeing disgust or annoyance at her petty doubts.

"Kagome, look at me." Junsui lifted Kagome's head so she could look into her eyes. "There is nothing for you to feel guilty about. You cannot change the past. What has happened has happened and cannot be changed. How we deal with our emotions that come from the past, whether they are fear or happiness shows what kind of people we are and defines who we are."

Junsui's words had banished some of her worries toward the youkai lord, but her words could not shake the misgivings that had appeared when Sesshomaru had tried to kill her before.

His eyes never betrayed any emotion, making him seem like a perfect killing machine, one that can only kill. But deep down, Kagome knew that he had a heart. Maybe not a big heart, but a heart nonetheless. A heart covered in ice, waiting for someone to melt it and make him smile again.

She did not know who could banish the ice surrounding his heart, or how long it would take. But she did know that she was determined to try, despite the consequences. She was willing to risk everything she had to warm his heart and breathe life into his soul.

**A/N:** I'm sooooooooooo sorry this is out so late! I had computer problems, you know, the things with the computer viruses that eat up your totally FINISHED chapter, then spit it back out with bits of saliva on it... shudders Well maybe not the spitting back out part, but close ENOUGH! Well, Kouga finally made an appearance. I bet some of you were wondering when he would show up. Well he finally did, and he's going to get a shock out of the not so crappy "Dog-crap." Yes, I know, that was lame. But you can't blame me for trying! Back to more important stuff. I was wondering if you guys want me to respond to the reviews that I get. I notice that many authors do that, and maybe it would be a nice treat to those of you that do review! wink wink nudge nudge


	9. Chapter Nine

**To Fulfill a Duty**

**Chapter Nine**

**By: DeadBHunter**

"talking" _'thinking'_

**Chapter Nine**

"Yay!" Kagome squealed, hugging the old miko.

'_Yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay yay!'_ Kagome was happy to say the least. She had just found out that she would be able to exit the trance state and one again dwell in the real world.

Junsui had just told Kagome that she had sufficiently mastered her powers enough to heal herself.

'_I can't wait to get out of here! I can see Inuyasha, Shippo-chan, Sango-chan, Miroku-sama, Kirara, Kaede-bachan, , Kouga-kun, Ginta, Hakuku, Ayame, Myouga-jichan, Mama, Souta, Jii-chan, Hojo-kun, Eri-chan, Yuka-chan, Ayumi-chan,-"_ Kagome was jerked from her thoughts when Junsui spoke.

"Child, I can only allow you to return to your friends after you are fully healed. I have told the tai youkai that so."

"That's okay," Kagome rushed to say. She was quick to agree because she knew she would return to her friends soon. She would be healed in no time and all would be well.

"I will return later tonight, Kagome. Rest until then. The trip back is spiritually taxing and requires a large amount of your miko powers."

"Okay," Kagome said cheerfully and skipped off into her house to do as Junsui told.

The edge of Inuyasha's Forest

_'What does he think he's doing? That baka hanyou can't catch me if I was dancing naked in front of him.'_ Kouga snickered at the thought of Inuyasha slashing and missing at his dancing naked form.

_'Fucking wolf, she's mine. No one else can touch her,'_ thought Inuyasha. Red clouded his mind and his possessive nature overtook his mind. The green trees and his friends faded out of his mind. The only thought that remained was the one with the wolf snickering at him, thinking that Kagome was his. He would show him, he would show them all. He was not to be taken lightly. He was a force to be reckoned with.

Inuyasha charged at Kouga, claws extended, ready to carve the ookami youkai into pieces. His pupils were tiny pinpricks in his eyes, drowning in a sea of red.

Kouga opened his eyes after crashing into a tree and the first thing he saw was Inuyasha licking blood off his fingers.

_'When did he become that strong? He smells different.'_ Kouga, scenting trouble, fled the scene in a whirlwind of dust, leaving the transformed Inuyasha in the hands of a neko youkai, two humans, and a baby kitsune.

_'Coward,'_ thought Inuyasha, _'Run away, ookami, run away.'_

Things were not looking good for the slightly diminished group of currently rational shard hunters. Inuyasha was between them and Testusaiga. There was no way to reach the sword before Inuyasha would decimate them. The only way to get it would be to reason with the irrational youkai.

"Hehe," Miroku said nervously, glancing around. "Inuyasha, my friend, nice weather we are having, don't you agree?" he said with a fake smile while slowly inching toward the hanyou gone youkai. Sango and Shippo both sweatdropped at his lame excuse for a distraction. All it would do was further irritate Inuyasha and make him more wary of his friends.

"Psst, Sango," Miroku whispered out of the corner of his mouth without turning around, "it's not working."

Inuyasha squinted through the red fog that clouded his mind. He could make out shapes; one was coming closer to him. It was a human. The human voice revealed a hidden motive that did not bide well with him. All he wanted to do was kill, and that he would do.

Miroku continued moving toward Inuyasha, but instead of the enraged hanyou relaxing, the opposite happened. Inuyasha's hands clenched and unclenched, his eyes narrowed and focused on the approaching form. A low growl emerged from his throat.

Miroku looked at Inuyasha and was shocked at the sight. He had seen Inuyasha mad before, but not like this. This face showed no control, no restraint, no discipline. All he could see was the blind fury that took over the minds of cornered animals.

Sango was worried. She knew what was expected of her. Miroku was supposed to distract Inuyasha somehow, and she was supposed to grab Testusaiga and force Inuyasha to return to his normal form. Too many things could go wrong. Inuyasha and Miroku could end up battling. She might not get Testusaiga fast enough, and Miroku could be killed because of her.

There was no time for doubts now. Inuyasha was distracted and she gathered her nerves to depart on Kirara and leave behind one distraught kitsune. Just as she was about to leave one word brought another out of peril and put another in danger.

"Kagome," whimpered Shippo. He wished Kagome was here. She was always there when he needed her. He felt so useless. He couldn't help Miroku fight Inuyasha, he would just get in the way. The only thing he could do was grab Testusaiga. He was faster and smaller then Sango, he could take Testusaiga before Miroku got hurt.

Mind made up, Shippo sprinted away from Sango and toward Testusaiga. But before he could make it, a set a claws came into view. The world faded and blackness overtook him. He didn't want to die like this. He wanted to die in the arms of his mother. He wanted to die in Kagome's arms.

"SHIPPO!" two voices cried out in anguish. They saw Inuyasha turn his attention from Miroku, only to focus it on Shippo. Inuyasha slashed at Shippo and watch him crumble to the ground.

Always the quick thinker, Miroku darted toward Testusaiga and managed to reach it before Inuyasha noticed. Miroku saw Inuyasha coming and quickly dived and at the same time he thrust Testusaiga into Inuyasha's bloodied hands, catching him by surprise. After all, who expects a human to best youkai?

Kaede's hut

"There is not much else I can do for Shippo. His wounds are deep and all we can do is pray that he will recover."

The group of shard hunters was gathered in Kaede's hut. They were all surrounding Shippo, who had not moved since Miroku had placed him there. His wounds were bandaged and nothing else could be done.

Inuyasha's ears drooped at hearing Kaede's words. It was his fault that Shippo was hurt. He hurt Shippo even if he had not meant to.

No one took notice of the hanyou's depression, all were busy watching the kitsune for signs of waking, waiting for something to show them that he would be alright.

Kagome's mind

"Okay, do you know what you need to do?"

"Hai, Junsui." The two mikos held hands and faded out of Kagome's mind.

Junsui's hut

Sesshomaru heard a high squeal and rushed into the hut. He expected to see a youkai attacking someone, but what he didn't expect to see was Kagome hugging Junsui with a huge grin on his face.

He watched as Kagome finally noticed his presence and he saw her back stiffen. The grin was wiped off her face and a confused look adorned her face.

"Sesshomaru-sama?"

"Miko."

Kagome frowned at his name for her but brushed it aside. She had more important things to discuss then what the tai youkai would call her.

"Ano, I was wondering if I could return to my friends now. I am healed now and I wish to see them again," Kagome slowly said. She was watching the demon lord for any kind of reaction and received none.

"I told my brother that I would return you when you were fully healed. Ask Junsui."

Kagome nodded at this and turned to face Junsui. "Junsui, may I go home now?" she asked.

Junsui shook her head. "No, child, it is not time yet. You are not yet fully healed. Until then, you will remain with me."

**A/N:** Sorry about the long wait between chapters! Life hates me. If you wan't me to tell you when I update, just leave your e-mail address in a review or e-mail me! Thanks for all of the reviews that I got! I never thought that I would even get this many! I decided to change a couple of things in my A/N. Now I'm going to post up and review responses, AND I want to thank I'm-Bent-not-Broken, keosis-chan, and curlyfry for putting me on their "Favorite Authors" list! YAY! So happy!!! And now to my review responses! Don't forget to review, YOU might just the NEXT person on my review responses section! I also decided to recommend a fic incase some of you can't find a good one!

Title: Enchanted Orbs

Author: syrinxsong

Notes: It's Sess/Kag as always, but it can only be found on !

Review Responses:

Mystic Hanyou: The first reply goes to you! You were the first person to tell me to write responses to you guys. Yep, Inuyasha and Kouga are DEFINITELY in for a surprise. Lucky for them, Kagome gets to spend time melting Sesshomaru's heart!

AngelMiko69: Thanks for taking the time to review on ASSKS! I know you normally review on so just wanted to say thanks. I updated right after you told me FF was working again, so it's up there!

ladyofthedragons1: Thanks for reviewing! Sesshomaru won't know what hit him, at least not for a little bit.

White Tiger Princess: Kouga's in for a shock. He never did see Inuyasha turn into a full demon…

twilight aura: Here's the update that you wanted! Hope you liked it.

Jessica AKA RoneMD: Thanks for all your kind words! It really made me want to write!

Kirara Grey: I haven't had the time to review your story on ASSKS, but have you posted up your whole story? Or just a couple chapters? Thanks for reviewing To Fulfill a Duty. I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

koga: Yep, you DO review! Yay! Reviews make me happy! HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY cough cough HA- cough HAP- cough cough cough

demonfox: Yep, Sess/Kag stories are sooooooo good! Ya gotta luv 'em!

c: It's really nice to know that you like my story so much! Glad you're "officially hooked," makes me feel so special! LOLs

animefan: Kagome is too nice not to care for Sess! That's what makes her Kagome! LOL

The Dragon Sorceress: Hehe…really sorry about getting this out SOOOOOOO late!!!! I'll try harder next time and maybe you won't be disappointed. SORRY!!!


	10. Chapter Ten

**To Fulfill a Duty**

**Chapter Ten**

**By: DeadBHunter**

"talking" _'thinking'_

**Chapter Ten**

She watched the herbs being ground up and added to a cup of boiling water. The water sizzled for a few seconds before it calmed and turned a pale yellow color. She tried to stifle a yawn, to hide her tiredness from the elderly miko, but she wasn't good enough.

"Kagome, sleep. You need to get some rest. Your return to the real world will have exhausted must of your powers.

_'I guess I have had a long day,'_ thought Kagome, _'after all, it's not everyday you find out that you're stuck in the same house as Sesshomaru.'_

Flashback

Kagome just stood there. That was all she could do. Her brain was too busy thinking about what Junsui had just said.

_"No, child, it is not time yet. You are not yet fully healed. Until then, you will remain with me."_ What could Junsui mean by that? She was healed, if not a bit tired. But that was it? What more did she want?

"Kagome?" asked Junsui after a few minutes of stunned silence.

"Wha-? Oh! Junsui, what do you mean by 'It's not time yet.' I think I might have heard you wrong."

"Oh child, I'm sorry. But you are not fully healed yet. I will only proclaim you fully healed when you have mastered your powers, ALL of your powers. Until then, you must stay here. You may return to your friends when you are healed."

"But-"

Junsui held up a hand to silence Kagome. "That is the way it must be. I am truly sorry."

End Flashback

She still couldn't believe it. No matter how many times she told herself that she was wrong and that it was true, she just couldn't accept it.

"Kagome, there is nothing you can do about it. Rest, it will do you good. Think about healing and your miko powers. Concentrating your powers on a goal will help you reach it."

"Hai, Junsui. I'll go to sleep now." Kagome quickly gulped down the yellow fluid that Junsui had just handed to her that was supposed to restore energy. _'Think about healing, think about who I'm doing this for, my friends.'_

Keade's Hut

_'Damnit! It's all the fucking ookami's fault! If it weren't for him, Shippo wouldn't be hurt! Damn him, damn him!'_

Keade watched the hanyou from across the room clench and unclench his hands, blood trickling from his freshly punctured hands to the floor of her home. She dreaded what she would have to tell the hanyou and his friends, but there was no other option. It just had to be done.

"Everyone, I am sorry to tell ye this, but most likely Shippo will not make it through the night. At most, he will live to morning." Keade watched as her words sunk in and the faces of those she had come to think of as family were frozen by shock.

_'No, this can't happen, not again. Everybody I care about is leaving me! First Kagome-chan and now Shippo. I truly am meant to live alone. Everyone I come into contact with has left me. Father, Kohaku, Kagome-chan, and now Shippo! Soon it'll be Inuyasha, then Miroku. NO! I can't let it happen! I have to save Shippo!'_

_'Fucking ookami…'_

_'Kagome-sama will not be pleased.'_

Everyone's thoughts were interrupted when Keade added more. "Only a miracle can save him now."

The shard hunters watched as the kitsune's breathing shortened as he drifted off into unconsciousness.

Later

Keade watched as Sango paced across the room. She had been like this for over an hour, mumbling about medicine. She would pause every now and then, stare at an unmoving form on the floor, and resume pacing. Sitting on opposite sides of the room was Miroku and Inuyasha, both against the wall. Miroku's lips were moving in silent prayer and Inuyasha had his arms folded in the sleeves of his haori with Testusaiga moved from its place on his waist to his lap.

Finally, Keade glanced at the resting kitsune on the floor. It had been hours and he hadn't moved on his own. His face was pale and even his youkai blood could not heal him fast enough. Soon he would die. He would die, forever losing the feeling of a mother's embrace. Inuyasha's claws had done their job.

Kagome's POV

She glanced toward the Goshinboku, expecting to see a red dot somewhere around it, indicating that Inuyasha was there. Sure enough, there was a red splotch at the base of the Goshinboku where Inuyasha sometimes sat.

She rushed toward Inuyasha, hoping to receive his gruff welcome. She dashed on the path through Inuyasha's forest to said hanyou. As she got closer and closer to the Goshinboku, she grew more and more worried. Kagome was making enough noise for Inuyasha to hear her. If not enough, his customary habit of sniffing the air should have alerted him to her presence.

What if he was hurt? She would never forgive herself if Inuyasha had been hurt while she was gone. It was her duty to knock some sense into that thick skull of his and prevent him from making a complete ass of him self. Maybe that was why he was on the ground; he was too injured to bring himself up into the branches of the Goshinboku.

Kagome's uneasiness grew and she ran faster and faster toward Inuyasha. She expected to find blood, but not much of it. The red dot she had seen from a distance had not indicated excessive blood loss. Kagome hoped she was wrong. She hoped she was worrying over nothing. Maybe he was just sleeping and he had gotten used to her presence and would not awaken. Maybe he trusted her. She hoped he did.

The image that reached her eyes would be engraved into her eyes forever. It wouldn't be a picture of Inuyasha lying in his own blood. It wouldn't even be a picture of Inuyasha. It would be a picture of her baby kitsune with blood slowly oozing from the four claw marks across his small body.

Kagome raced toward her adoptive kit and quickly dropped to her knees. She hugged him gently to her body as she silently beat herself up on the inside. She didn't want to cause him any more pain. He was close to death. She could already tell with her weak senses. A youkai, even hanyou, would have been able to smell the death that unnaturally clung to his frail body. He had stopped breathing; making the rosy tint usually on his face, disappear, only to be covered by a sheet of white.

Kagome buried her face into his body and cried. She didn't know how long she just sat there, rocking back and forth, sobs wrenching her body, never ceasing. She remembered all the times she had with him.

There was the first time when she and Inuyasha had stumbled upon Shippo. The Thunder brothers had just killed his father and he stole the shards from Kagome to revenge him. There was also the time before the shard hunters had met Sango, and they were fighting against a shard-enhanced demon called Rouyakan. Kagome had dropped the shards, and Shippo had grabbed them and run away.

By now, she was stained in Shippo's blood; and it made her realize how much he had suffered before she came. Kagome sat on the ground, back turned toward the Goshinboku. She closed her eyes and cried into his soft fur, wishing she had been here to save him from the pain. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, Shippo," she repeatedly whispered into deaf ears.

A bright purple glow surrounded Kagome and Shippo. Unknown to Kagome, the blood vanished and the four slashes on Shippo melted into his body and his skin healed. The only evidence of Shippo's injury left was a small scar that would remain forever where the deepest one was, above his heart.

End Dream

Kagome woke up covered in sweat and more tired than she was when she went to sleep. She clutched her heart and swiftly sat up. Her head spun and her vision was blurry for a few seconds before it finally cleared and she focused on Junsui who was sleeping in the futon across the room.

_'That was just a dream. Shippo's fine. It was just a dream, it was just a dream, it was just a dream, it was just a dream.'_ No matter how many times she told herself, Kagome didn't believe a word of it. She had this feeling that it really was real. Shippo really had been hurt. What else would explain the sudden loss of power, unless the trip back to the real world had taken more out of her than she originally thought?

Keade's Hut

His hand began moving when a strong magical presence left the hut and awakened him. _'Closer, just a little bit closer. Almost. Ah…bliss.'_

A loud noise filled the air and the group of shard hunters and one perverted monk sharply sat up.

"My dear Sango, I was merely-"

"Houshi-sama…"

_'It was worth it,'_ Miroku thought as he soothed his stinging cheek from Sango's slap.

"If you do that again, houshi-sama, more than just your face will hurt," Sango threatened, swiftly averting her eyes from Miroku's face to certain parts of his body.

Miroku brought his hands down to shield his body from Sango's glare and protested. "But my dear Sango, I was merely complimenting the condition your body is in from all the youkai exterminating. I was simply admiring your hard work."

Sango scoffed in disbelief and glanced toward Shippo. She gave a gasp of astonishment as her jaw dropped.

By now, all eyes were turned toward Shippo, staring in disbelief at the condition he was in. He was sitting up and looked completely healed. Nothing remained to remind the shard hunters of the injuries Inuyasha had inflicted upon him after losing Testusaiga.

"What?" Shippo asked in confusion, "What's wrong?" He turned behind only to find a blank wall. "What? Inuyashaaaaa," Shippo whined. "Tell me!"

"Feh. Like I should tell you," Inuyasha sneered.

Shippo let out a small growl and began chewing on Inuyasha's ears. He had expected Inuyasha to thump him on the head, but instead Inuyasha just sat there stunned.

"Sango, Miroku, tell me what you guys are talking about," complained Shippo.

"Well, Shippo, yesterday, Kouga came and Inuyasha transformed after Testusaiga got knocked away from him," explained Miroku. Shippo just nodded his head and indicated for Miroku to continue. "When Kouga scented Inuyasha's blood change, he ran away just like when he scented the Kaze no Kizu. We attempted to get Testusaiga into Inuyasha's hands, but we couldn't. Finally, you ran toward Testusaiga, but before you could reach it, Inuyasha got in the way and he slashed at you. We took you to Keade's hut last night. But now, you are completely healed."

"So that's what happened after I saw Inuyasha. So why am I healed now?" Shippo questioned.

"That's what confuses us. We did not expect for you to make it through the night, you were not even breathing. But look at you now, you are fine, " answered Miroku.

"I believe I know the answer to that," Keade interjected. "I sensed a magical presence in my home while we were sleeping. I did not wake because it felt helpful and caring, like how Kagome feels."

"I felt the same thing this morning," commented Miroku. "I woke up when I felt the aura leaving."

"Maybe it was Kagome-chan. If you say the aura felt like her, then why can't it be her?" asked Sango.

"Sango," Keade began, "we all know that Kagome has amazing powers, but she does not have control of them. It is also unlikely that she has healed enough to exit her trance. If she did, then she would be back here with us. Even if that did happen, she would still not have the knowledge to do so. The skill to heal someone from so far away is very difficult to learn and master. Even someone with Kagome's power would not be able to perform the healing without much training."

"But I know it was Kagome," cried Shippo. "I can tell! She feels different from everyone else. She feels like home."

**A/N:**

**Translations:**

Goshinboku – the God tree where Inuyasha was pinned

Ookami - wolf

Kaze no Kizu – Inuyasha's wind scar attack

Haori - kind of like a jacket or overcoat

Review Responses:

Sesshoumarugrl: Your review made me feel sooooo good!!! I'm glad you're enjoying the story!! We'll see about them getting together…maybe sometime…it'll happen wink

Daughter of the Void: Well there's your answer about Shippo!!! He's one of my favorite characters too! We can't have him dying can we?

BGC: Hahahahahaha, that was kind of weird, but it's okay!!! I hope this update came soon enough for you!

Immortal-Rising: I hope this chapter answers your questions about Shippo healing!

Mystic Hanyou: Hmm…I was considering making Inuyasha be alone…but I do feel sorry for him. He DOES lose Kagome after all. I think I'll just make him happy somehow…happy endings are fun!! I never thought of Inuyasha having someone…we'll see…

Annie: I try to make it realistic and stuff for you guys! I like to know that you guys like my story so much!

Kirara Grey: Heh heh…I'll read your story soon…sigh homework sucks. I added your e-mail address so now I'll e-mail you whenever I update! Thanks for the review!!

animefan: faints from happiness sits up hang on…can't faint yet. I gotta write more chapters for you guys!!! Its reviews like the one that you sent me that makes me want to write! Thanks!

twilight aura: hmmm…I dunno if Inuyasha can transform into a dog just like Sess…hmmmmm I've never seen him transform, but you never know! If you can't see that, it's a winking face, because I know on some sites that won't show up.

InuyashaJunky: HAHAHA! Your review was so funny! I guess all the thinking about healing paid off for poor Shippo!

kagome: I'm soooooooo sorry the last chapter was so late!!! I had to write this story for school, and I worked really REALLY hard on it! I think it turned out pretty good…even if it was worth only 20 points sigh. I should have been typing my chapter then…sigh I'm so disappointed with myself. I hope this chapter came out soon enough for you!!

latin-gurl: Glad you enjoyed my chapter! I hope you enjoy this one as much! I added your e-mail to my mailing list, so you should have gotten an e-mail that told you that I updated.

Lady of Chaos 2005: Thanks for the nice words!! I hope this update came soon enough for you.

Nova Alexandria: Yep, poor Shippo. That's why I couldn't let him die! What would we do without him?

The Dragon Sorceress: But I am still sorry though. I told you guys that I would try to update every week or so…sigh I think this chapter came out a bit faster than the other ones though!


	11. Chapter Eleven

**To Fulfill a Duty**

**Chapter Eleven**

**By: DeadBHunter**

"talking" _'thinking'_

**Chapter Eleven**

A bad smell awakened Kagome from her ponderings. Junsui held cup filled with a pale yellow liquid (AN: It's in Chapter Ten) up to her face.

"Drink this," Junsui repeated, placing the cup in Kagome's hand.

"What is it?" Kagome asked, giving it a tentative sip and later spluttering to get the taste out of her mouth.

"It's a potion commonly used by mikos. It is used to restore energy and power if the drinker has any. Simple and abundant herbs are used to make it, as well as only a slight amount of purification powers. Even practically drained mikos can make it, making it effective in cases where strength is needed to save one's life."

"So it's kind of like a Power Bar, right?" asked Kagome, curiosity getting the best of her. _'I bet it only comes in one flavor though,'_ Kagome thought, with the taste of the potion fresh in her mind.

"What?"

"A Power Bar. It gives you energy for when you play games and you feel tired."

"I suppose it is like this Pow-er Bar you speak of. But there are harmful side effects if used to often and inappropriately."

"Like what?" Kagome questioned.

Before Junsui could answer, Sesshomaru opened the door to the hut and looked at the two mikos on the ground.

"I will be leaving. I have business in the Western Lands to attend to. I will be back by nightfall," Sesshomaru announced.

Junsui nodded in acceptance to this statement and said, "Yes, milord."

Near the Well

Inuyasha growled as he faced off against Miroku. Both stood still in fighting stance and mentally prepared for battle. The crunching sound of leaves beneath their feet faded away. Miroku took the initiative to attack first and made a move to knock Inuyasha unconscious with his staff.

Testusaiga rose up to clash with the staff, neither breaking due to youki and holy powers. Miroku took a step back and once again made a move to harm Inuyasha.

The hanyou clumsily blocked and growled when the monk attempted to tell him something.

"Inuyasha, you are not thinking. You are too busy being mad at Kouga! Focus, or I will knock Testusaiga away from you and possibly have to use the ofuda in my pocket on you," Miroku threatened.

Inuyasha growled at Miroku and faster than Miroku could see, he pointed his sword at Miroku's neck, and grinned.

"I win."

"Again, Inuyasha?" Miroku challenged a hidden smirk on his face.

Inuyasha returned to fighting stance as Miroku closed his eyes moved his lips in a silent chant. Golden eyes watched curiously, but inevitably losing patience and attacking the monk.

Testusaiga cut through air and was aimed to slash through Miroku's heart. A now glowing staff cut off Testusaiga's path and faster than Inuyasha could react, Inuyasha and Testusaiga were thrown to opposite sides of the clearing.

Inuyasha turned toward the forest at sounds of snickering. He could make out the sight of Shippo laughing at him for being thrown to the ground. Inuyasha growled in reply and started to get up toward the kitsune.

Before Inuyasha could get to his feet, an ofuda was slapped to his back. He growled at this and turned to yell at Miroku. But he couldn't move.

"Never underestimate the strength of holy powers, Inuyasha. These ofuda cannot be touched by any youkai, or hanyou for that matter," Miroku said. The monk glanced up at the sun, grinned, and continued in a more mocking manner. "Ah, Inuyasha. It's time for lunch. There is only one pack of instant ramen left from Kagome's time. I suppose if you aren't going to be coming to lunch, I will just have to eat it myself."

Inuyasha struggled to escape his bindings but the ofuda did its job. Miroku turned his back on Inuyasha and walked slowly back to Kaede's hut.

"Oi! Bozu! Miroku! Don't touch _MY_ ramen! Get this fuckin' ofuda off me!" shouted Inuyasha.

"Do not worry, Inuyasha. I will take great care of your ramen. What safer place to keep it than my stomach? After your lunch is secure, I'll take the ofuda off."

Inuyasha growled at Miroku's back and struggled to get free of the ofuda. He couldn't move his body and he was starting to get hungry.

The sounds of childish laughter joined the gurgling of Inuyasha's stomach, and an idea formed Inuyasha's mind.

"Oi, brat. Take this ofuda off me."

"Why?"

"Because if you don't, when I get free I'm going to beat you up."

Shippo jumped off the tree and walked in front of Inuyasha. "Inuyasha," Shippo sighed in exasperation, "you're stupider than I thought you were. Remember what Miroku said, no youkai can touch the ofuda. Besides, even if I could take it off, why would I? I smell ramen, I better hurry up or Miroku is going to eat all of it."

"Brat, if you can get it off, I'll give you the ramen I hid a while ago. You wouldn't be able to get any from Miroku."

Shippo considered this for a moment, and nodded his head. "Okay, but you better not be lying about hiding the ramen!"

"I'm not! Now hurry up!"

Shippo grumbled under his breath, but decided to take advantage of the situation. He jumped onto Inuyasha's head and moved his feet around a little to mess up Inuyasha's hair. Then, he slowly made his way to Inuyasha's shoulder, making sure to take some silver strands with him.

Shippo reached a paw to the ofuda, hesitating when it began to glow. As he brought his paw closer and closer to the ofuda, the light grew brighter and brighter. Shippo all of a sudden snatched the ofuda away from Inuyasha, expecting to be burned. But no pain came. Shippo dropped the ofuda to the ground in surprise, and watched the light dim away to nothing.

Inuyasha looked on, wondering if there was something wrong with the ofuda. He flexed his fingers and brought a claw to touch the ofuda. Once again, the bright light appeared, this time burning Inuyasha's claw away so he couldn't touch the ofuda.

"Crap!" Inuyasha said, looking at his dull claw. _'Now I'm going to have to wait until it grows back.'_

"Stupid ofuda! I guess it didn't sense a threat in you, brat. Otherwise it would have burned you. Your too weak for even an ofuda to be defensive around you," insulted Inuyasha, positive that that was the reason why he had been burned but Shippo hadn't.

Kaede's Hut

Kaede watched as Miroku fell forward, barely missing his prized bowl of ramen before it was newly situated in Inuyasha's claws.

"Feh, serves him right," Inuyasha said between mouthfuls of ramen.

"Ewww! Inuyasha has no manners! Gross!" exclaimed Shippo, disgusted at the sight of partly mashed up noodles being moved around in Inuyasha's mouth.

"You promised me ramen! Now where is it? You better not have been lying!" Shippo accused.

"Of course I wasn't lying, runt. Do you think I would do that to you?" Inuyasha said with a grin. "I hid it six months ago."

Shippo gaped at Inuyasha and transformed into his pink balloon form. Shippo began chewing on Inuyasha's ears and repeatedly saying, "Liar."

"And I ate it yesterday," added Inuyasha, with an evil glint in his eye.

"Is that healthy?" Sango asked Kaede. The miko gave a disappointed look at the hanyou and slowly shook her head.

Near Junsui's hut

Kagome sat on the ground and gazed lazily at the river. There was a calm section of the river that was like a small pond. She swirled her finger in the pond and enjoyed the sunlight streaming down on her. Small pebbles littered the bottom of the river, easily seen through the clean water.

There was nothing to do. Sesshomaru was off at his castle doing some tai youkai business that she couldn't care less about. Junsui had told her to enjoy the warm day because with winter coming, there might not be many more like this.

This left Kagome with nothing to do besides gazing at the river. _'Might as well get some work done,'_ Kagome thought. She quickly retrieved her math textbook and returned to her position by the river.

_'Eh? That can't be right…if x3 and y5, then z should equal 7. Arg! I don't like math! Let's try again, 'Prove that z14 if x3 and y5. Z equals four x plus two y plus four divided by the square root of four.'_

"Mou," Kagome said to no one in particular. She spat lightly onto the ground as little pieces of pink left her mouth. Her eraser was now gone. _'Might as well go back and get another one.'_

Kagome returned to Junsui's hut and got another eraser. When she went back out, the sun was covered by dark clouds. She went back in and set her books on the ground.

After telling Junsui, Kagome left to add pieces of firewood to the dwindling pile before the rain soaked all the wood.

Later

"Ooh! What a pretty flower." Kagome plucked the flower and stuck it behind the ear, picking up the pieces of firewood she had dropped. She looked up and a drop of rain fell in her eye. "Ah," she said while rubbing the offended eye. Kagome blinked a couple of times to remove the fuzziness that had invaded her vision. By now, it had started raining lightly and the wood was soaked.

Inside Junsui's hut

"Just set the wood by the fire," Junsui said to who she thought was Kagome. The mass of damp clothes and wet hair dropped the firewood on the ground and went back outside to squeeze the water from her hair. A more presentable Kagome now entered the hut and sat down next to Junsui.

"Thank you for the firewood, child. The outside of the wood must be dry at least before it will light." The old miko set the wood around the fire to allow it to dry, as she had learned from a wounded traveler a couple of years ago.

Sesshomaru strode into the hut as Kagome and Junsui looked up at him. "This is Rin."

"Sesshomaru-sama, Sesshomaru-sama! You forgot-"

"Jaken, do I forget things?" Sesshomaru smoothly asked.

"No, you never forget anything," Jaken quickly replied, afraid that he had angered his master in one way or another.

"That is Jaken." Finished with introductions, Sesshoomaru sat in the farthest corner of the room.

Rin stood indecisively between the demon lord and the fire, trying to figure out where to go. Water droplets were falling from her hair and clothes, dotting the ground with wet splotches. She looked questioningly at Sesshomaru for a reply. He nodded at her and she ran to the fire to dry off.

After a while, Rin began to get bored. Kagome, noticing her boredom, decided to entertain the child.

"Look at the flower, Rin. I just picked it today," Kagome said, taking the flower out of her hair and handing it to the eager child.

"Ooh, it's so pretty!" Rin exclaimed, her fascination with flowers getting the best of her.

Despite this, Rin's mind, like other children's, has a short attention span. Rin sighed again, gazing at the wall of the hut.

Once again, Kagome decided to take matters into her own hands.

"Rin, do you see this piece of wood?" Kagome asked, holding up one of the pieces she had brought in earlier.

"Yes," Rin said slowly.

"Can you feel how it's wet?"

Rin reached a hand toward the log and gently brushed it with her fingers. It was still slightly damp.

"Well, Rin. When wood burns, there is the crackling noise. You can hear it now if you're quiet and listen."

Both stopped talking and turned their ears toward the fire. Sure enough, a crackling noise could be heard.

"What is that noise?" Rin asked.

"Well, that noise is the water being released from the wood. For example, if I burn this piece, it will make a louder crackling noise than the one that's already burning, because this one is a little wet."

"Really?" Rin asked, eyes growing large with eagerness.

"Yep, watch." Kagome set the piece of wood in the fire. Seconds later, a crackling noise filled the hut, louder than the one before.

"Miko," came a voice in the dark, startling two of the three humans in the hut. "Where did you learn this?"

"I learned in my t, I mean, uh, tree house. Yeah, tree house," Kagome managed to get out.

"Hm, tree house," the youkai lord said doubtfully.

"Yeah, I told Inuyasha and the others too," she added. "Not that he cared," she whispered.

Sesshomaru gave a small smile at the insult towards his half-brother, not that anyone saw it, that is. After all, he was in the dark.

With Inuyasha

"Ah-choo! Ah-ah-ah-choo!"

"And I thought you said youkai didn't get sick," taunted Shippo. "It must be a hanyou thing, you know, weaker blood," he whispered good-naturally at Miroku.

"I heard that, brat! Someone must be talkin' crap, ah-choo, about me!" Inuyasha got out before another round of sneezes forced him to stop talking.

"They have a lot of things to talk about, don't they, Miroku?" Shippo said.

"Indeed they do, indeed they do."

**A/N:** I'm so sorry it took me forever to get this chapter out, but I made it really long for you guys! If you want to be notified when I update, leave your e-mail in your review. Otherwise, just review anyways! Oh, and the thing with the fire is true, as well as the math problem.

**Translations:**

ofuda: sacred scroll

houshi: Buddhist monk

bozu: a less respectful way to say houshi

**Review Responses:**

Daughter of the Void: Yep, Shippo's still alive! throws confetti Sesshomaru will come around… eventually… You know Sess, always shy. LOLs. Rin's here too. You have to have Rin. Who else is going to keep Kagome happy when Sess is being an a? An about the emotions, you'll just have to see!

latin-gurl: Thanks for the review! Yay! Short but sweet, just like…candy? Candy is sweet…but short? Hmmmm…I'm not sure…

Kag Higurashi: Who says that they'll find out that Kagome healed Shippo? Muahahahahhahahahahaha. The evil authoress strikes! LOL.

The Dragon Sorceress: Well…well…well…I'm the most sorry! writes "I'm the most sorry" on forehead Ha, you can't beat that. LOL.

Dah88: Yep, Shippo's allllllllllllllllll healed!

Sesshoumarugrl: Hahahaha! Feel good reviews are so good, like candy, and Sess, and TV, and Sess, and computer, and Sess, and phone, and candy, and Sess, and candy…faints from verbal exhaustion

Mystic Hanyou: Hehe, Sess came in now! Yep! And Inuyasha will end up happy hopefully. Everyone probably will, except for Kikyou. Heh heh…hate her… That's why my pen name is DeadBHunter, the "B" standing for bitch, so it's Dead Bitch Hunter! YAYAYAYAY! I think I've had enough chocolate for one day…

twilightaura: I hope you liked this chapter. I tried to make it sweet for you guys!

Nova Alexandria: I'm not sure if the chapter was short, according to MS Word it was about 7 pages, but it might just be the review responses. Anyways, thanks for reviewing!

missthix2006: Yep, Kag/Sess are a great couple! I'm glad you liked my story so far! Look forward to hearing from you again!

Kirara Grey: Thanks for reviewing, I'm still reading your story, it might be some time before I finish it though.

Whimsy: Well, that was enlightening. I'll give what you said some thought.

Annie: Well even if the previous chapter didn't have any Sess, this one does!

InuyashaJunky: HAHAHAHA There! I did it AGAIN, I laughed at you! Lol. Well I guess your seriousness paid off grins. After all Shippo DID survive. You should be grateful! nods head solemnly and shakes finger at InuyashaJunky VERY grateful!

rosestotts27: Thanks for the review!

erica c.: I didn't know if you wanted me to tell you when I updated or not, so I did anyways. Thanks for your review!


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